Youth 'abandon' themselves to serve others

Six-time Dove winner KJ-52 to perform at end of outreach

Some of the student pastors gathered for a photo shoot Tuesday at the First Baptist Church of Ocala. Back row: John "Beef" Branard with Maricamp Road Church of Christ, left, Chrishon Ducker with Grace Presbyterian, Ryan Davis with St. Pauls United Methodist Church, Jonathan Stephens with Highlands Baptist Church, Chuck Gaj with Central Christian, Bryan Bair with First Baptist Church, Rob Loy with College Road Baptist Church and Eric Daume with Become Youth Ministries. Front row: Chuck Gaj, left, with Central Christian and Matthew Cornett, right, with Wings of Faith.

Doug Engle/Star-Banner

By Marian RizzoCorrespondent

Published: Wednesday, February 6, 2013 at 12:24 p.m.

Last Modified: Wednesday, February 6, 2013 at 12:24 p.m.

Nearly 500 students and youth leaders from area churches will abandon their TVs, video games and iPhones on Saturday and get their hands dirty while doing community service projects throughout the county.

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Abandon 2013 is being hosted by First Baptist Church of Ocala. Bryan Bair, the minister of students, said the name is about abandoning oneself, serving others and expecting nothing in return except to draw closer to God. The project is in its sixth year.

Saturday's event will unite volunteers from 13 churches in eight denominations. Starting at 9 a.m., students and leaders will disperse to 15 locations to work on a variety of maintenance projects, such as cleanup of roadsides, playgrounds and parks; and making repairs at Camp Sozo, the Boys & Girls Club and the Silver Springs Shores Community Center. Students also will be washing buses for Marion Senior Services and ARC Marion.

"The heartbeat of Abandon has always centered around bringing the churches, the body of Christ, together, serving the community, unified, and not expecting anything in return," Bair said. "We want the community to know that the church loves Marion County. We want to demonstrate that with our actions, not just with our mouth."

Bair referred to this type of ministry as "missional living."

"What I mean by that is serving and living in our current context, wherever God has placed us as missionaries, like he would on foreign soil," Bair said. "Last year, we served at Jervey Gantt. They had all the equipment and sod there. All the stuff that would have taken hours and hours of paid labor, we did it all for free. We saved a lot of man hours for the county."

The biggest group of volunteers, 150 students and leaders, will come from Church at the Springs. Josh Robinson, director of the SOURCE student ministry, said the response from students has been overwhelming.

"All the kids we've talked to, they're just pumped to come," he said. "We're encouraging the students to just be the hands and feet of Christ in our community. The first thing we want students to realize is that they are the church, not just the future of the church. The second thing, right in their backyard, in Marion County, there are needs people have that we tend to overlook. We want them to have a heart for people and just to serve them."

At the end of the day, the volunteers will gather at First Baptist Church for an inspirational program featuring Dove Award-winning hip hop artist KJ-52. The event is free and open to the public.

In a phone interview, KJ-52 spoke about his own experiences with student ministry.

"I came to Christ as a teenager," he said. "I used to be an inner city youth minister in Fort Myers. I want to encourage the students to stand up for their faith. At the culmination of their work project, it'll be more of a party."

KJ-52 said he wasn't surprised to hear so many students had signed up for the work.

"I think it's very indicative of where these kids are at," he said. "Most of these millennial or Gen-Y kids are causes-oriented."

The winner of six Dove Awards, KJ-52 said he is planning to perform his latest recording, "Dangerous," and other hits. He said Saturday's event isn't just for young people.

"I think it's a misconception that it's a younger person's music. Families come to the shows," he said.

Abandon 2013 coincides with Leadership Rocks, a massive weekend youth program hosted by Student Leadership University in Orlando. Brent Crowe, vice president, is taking time out from the Orlando events to speak to students in Ocala.

"I am incredibly honored and excited about the opportunity to share the life-changing message of Jesus at Abandon 2013 this coming Saturday night," Crowe wrote in an email. "God has told a grand and true story with the Bible concerning this world and his plan to redeem so many in need of rescuing and salvation. Therefore, my message will focus on the hope that is offered to every human being based on the story that God has told."

<p>Nearly 500 students and youth leaders from area churches will abandon their TVs, video games and iPhones on Saturday and get their hands dirty while doing community service projects throughout the county.</p><p>Abandon 2013 is being hosted by First Baptist Church of Ocala. Bryan Bair, the minister of students, said the name is about abandoning oneself, serving others and expecting nothing in return except to draw closer to God. The project is in its sixth year.</p><p>Saturday's event will unite volunteers from 13 churches in eight denominations. Starting at 9 a.m., students and leaders will disperse to 15 locations to work on a variety of maintenance projects, such as cleanup of roadsides, playgrounds and parks; and making repairs at Camp Sozo, the Boys & Girls Club and the Silver Springs Shores Community Center. Students also will be washing buses for Marion Senior Services and ARC Marion.</p><p>"The heartbeat of Abandon has always centered around bringing the churches, the body of Christ, together, serving the community, unified, and not expecting anything in return," Bair said. "We want the community to know that the church loves Marion County. We want to demonstrate that with our actions, not just with our mouth."</p><p>Bair referred to this type of ministry as "missional living."</p><p>"What I mean by that is serving and living in our current context, wherever God has placed us as missionaries, like he would on foreign soil," Bair said. "Last year, we served at Jervey Gantt. They had all the equipment and sod there. All the stuff that would have taken hours and hours of paid labor, we did it all for free. We saved a lot of man hours for the county."</p><p>The biggest group of volunteers, 150 students and leaders, will come from Church at the Springs. Josh Robinson, director of the SOURCE student ministry, said the response from students has been overwhelming.</p><p>"All the kids we've talked to, they're just pumped to come," he said. "We're encouraging the students to just be the hands and feet of Christ in our community. The first thing we want students to realize is that they are the church, not just the future of the church. The second thing, right in their backyard, in Marion County, there are needs people have that we tend to overlook. We want them to have a heart for people and just to serve them."</p><p>At the end of the day, the volunteers will gather at First Baptist Church for an inspirational program featuring Dove Award-winning hip hop artist KJ-52. The event is free and open to the public.</p><p>In a phone interview, KJ-52 spoke about his own experiences with student ministry.</p><p>"I came to Christ as a teenager," he said. "I used to be an inner city youth minister in Fort Myers. I want to encourage the students to stand up for their faith. At the culmination of their work project, it'll be more of a party."</p><p>KJ-52 said he wasn't surprised to hear so many students had signed up for the work.</p><p>"I think it's very indicative of where these kids are at," he said. "Most of these millennial or Gen-Y kids are causes-oriented."</p><p>The winner of six Dove Awards, KJ-52 said he is planning to perform his latest recording, "Dangerous," and other hits. He said Saturday's event isn't just for young people.</p><p>"I think it's a misconception that it's a younger person's music. Families come to the shows," he said.</p><p>Abandon 2013 coincides with Leadership Rocks, a massive weekend youth program hosted by Student Leadership University in Orlando. Brent Crowe, vice president, is taking time out from the Orlando events to speak to students in Ocala.</p><p>"I am incredibly honored and excited about the opportunity to share the life-changing message of Jesus at Abandon 2013 this coming Saturday night," Crowe wrote in an email. "God has told a grand and true story with the Bible concerning this world and his plan to redeem so many in need of rescuing and salvation. Therefore, my message will focus on the hope that is offered to every human being based on the story that God has told."</p>